Sean Penn Charity To Sponsor Haitian Runners

Port-Au-Prince, Haiti -- The Haiti humanitarian group for Hollywood star Sean Penn says it will sponsor five Haitian runners in the New York City Marathon in November.

Penn's J/P Haitian Relief Organization said Friday it will back the top three men and two women finishers running Sunday in a half-marathon in Port-au-Prince.

An executive for the group says the decision to help the Haitians compete was inspired in part by an Associated Press story in January about distance runner Astrel Clovis. He regularly runs through Port-au-Prince three years after an earthquake devastated the capital.

J/P HRO also has secured five more slots for celebrities and philanthropists who will participate in the Nov. 3 marathon to raise funds for the group.